Micro-blog is a system with a similarity to weblog system that allows messages to be posted instantly. Micro-blog is featured with its integrity and openness, which allows users to post messages thereon through mobile phones, instant messaging (IM) software, or external API (Application Programming Interface), etc. Along with the expanding of the application of IM software, posting micro-blog messages through IM is becoming an increasingly favorable way for users. Accordingly, the application of the micro-blog blossomed greatly as a new product which could expand the message dissemination mechanism of the IM.
Micro-blog list is an important application for the micro-blog system. Micro-blog list is a platform that allows a limited scope of focusing, linking, and communication for micro-blog users that have the same favorite or tags. When a user sets up a micro-blog list or is added into a micro-blog list, he or she could initiate conversation with multiple users within the right micro-blog list. Users may selectively follow other users or micro-blog lists that they are interested in, for building up a wide scope of relationship chain, as well as for quickly see messages posted by the users followed or included in the followed micro-blog lists. The messages posted by the users that are followed or included in the followed micro-blog lists are ranked by the timeline, the ranked message list is the homepage message list (or homepage message timeline), which stands for the most significance in the micro-blog application. Due to the discretion of the relationship chain in micro-blog, as a user follows large amount of users, the homepage message list would become disordered that critical message from particular users would be missed. For instance, when a followed user is relatively active, the homepage message list would be occupied by this followed user while other followed users' messages would be missed. A problem and demand arise along with the development of the micro-blog technology in effectively organizing the homepage message list, thereby increasing the efficiency in the usage of the homepage.